The Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles were locked in a titanic battle for the NFC East crown last season, which the Eagles ultimately won.
While the Eagles progressed to the Super Bowl, Dallas again came unstuck in the Divisional Round against the San Francisco 49ers. With Philadelphia possessing serious weapons on both sides of the ball, how does Dallas “catch” its division opponent?
ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky has a theory.
“Speed, speed, speed,” Orlovsky said on NFL Live. “Maybe it’s Michael Mayer, who’s not the speed-centric tight end but a full, complete guy. Bijan Robinson has been linked there. They need to get faster because they’re not, in one draft, going to catch Philadelphia on the line of scrimmage. So, the only other alternative if you can’t go through them, go around them.”
Adding Brandin Cooks via trade helps that cause, and after throwing to him for the first time, Dallas QB Dak Prescott likes what he saw.
“The guy is different; that is real speed,” Prescott said on the Adam Schefter podcast.
It’s true that Mayer isn’t the quickest tight end in the draft. Robinson is a home-run threat every time he touches the ball (he ran a 4.46 40-yard dash). Receiver Zay Flowers is another receiver with speed (4.42 40-yard dash). Others like Jalin Hyatt (4.40) and Marvin Mims (4.38) are among those who Dallas could pursue as well in trying to fill this need.
And if the Cowboys want to “catch” the Eagles for the division and in the NFC standings, then perhaps adding some speed to the offense is the way to go.